Starved Rock State Park - Utica, IL - State/Provincial Parks on Waymarking.com

In Utica, along IL Route 178 and by the Illinois River, is Starved Rock State Park.

The park main entrance is off IL Route 178, which runs north-south through the city of Utica. IL Route 71 also runs through the park. There is a large parking lot at the end of the road.

There is a visitor center a short distance from the parking lot. It is well worth spending time there. There is a 3-D map of the park that shows the bluffs and trails. There is are nicely done history and natural history exhibits, and a wide desk with a staff person to help guide you through the park.

The park web site is great for information on history and recreation. The following is a summary - see the web site for details. You can also download a trail map from the site.

The site is best known for the St. Peters sandstone formations that tower over 100 ft above the river surface. Of course, the bluff top is at level with the plains, so that means the Illinois River is about 100 ft. lower than the average height of the land. Many miles of trails traverse the base and top of the bluffs - see the web site for accessability information.

At the top of either Starved Rock or Eagle Cliff, you have great opportunities to view the river and the Starved Rock Lock and Dam right there. This location is also a great place to spot bald eagles in the winter, which winter on the island in the river. Near the parking lot, you can fish along the edge. Camping is available at the campground, or you can stay at one of the lodge buildings.

Starved Rock has a lot of history associated with it. The following is from the park web site:

"This area has been home to humans from as early as 8000 B.C. Hopewellian, Woodland and Mississippian Native American cultures thrived here. The most recent and probably the most numerous group of Native Americans to live here was the Illiniwek, from the 1500s to the 1700s. Approximately 5,000 to 7,000 Kaskaskias, a subtribe of the Illiniwek, had a village extending along the bank of the Illinois River across from the current park.

In 1673, French explorers Louis Jolliet and Father Jacques Marquette passed through here on their way up the Illinois from the Mississippi. Known as “Pere,” the French word for “Father,” Marquette returned two years later to found the Mission of the Immaculate Conception-Illinois’ first Christian mission-at the Kaskaskia Indian village.

When the French claimed the region (and, indeed, the entire Mississippi Valley), they built Fort St. Louis atop Starved Rock in the winter of 1682-83 because of its commanding strategic position above the last rapids on the Illinois River. Pressured from small war parties of Iroquois in the French and Indian wars, the French abandoned the fort by the early 1700s and retreated to what is now Peoria, where they established Fort Pimitoui. Fort St. Louis became a haven for traders and trappers, but by 1720 all remains of the fort had disappeared.

Starved Rock State Park derives its name from a Native American legend of injustice and retribution. In the 1760s, Pontiac, chief of the Ottawa tribe upriver from here, was slain by an Illiniwek while attending a tribal council in southern Illinois. According to the legend, during one of the battles that subsequently occurred to avenge his killing, a band of Illiniwek, under attack by a band of Potawatomi (allies of the Ottawa), sought refuge atop a 125-foot sandstone butte. The Ottawa and Potawatomi surrounded the bluff and held their ground until the hapless Illiniwek died of starvation- giving rise to the name “Starved Rock.”

The Illinois State Parks Commission was initially headquartered in Starved Rock State Park after the park was purchased in 1911."

There is much to see here on your visit. Even better - visit multiple times!

Park Type: recreational, overnight. Activities: picnic, camping, hiking, visitor center, fishing, birdwatching Park Fees: Not listed Background: Starved Rock State Park is a great recreational facility that has miles of hiking trails through sandstone bluffs, picnic and fishing areas, birdwatching, and overnight facilities. The area is known as Starved Rock for a legendwhere a Native American tribe suspected of assassinating Chief Pontiac of another tribe were trapped in the bluffs and literally starved to death. French explorers built a dam (no longer existing). The park is now part of the state of Illinois. Date Established?: 1/1/1911 Link to Park: [Web Link] Additional Entrance Points: N 41° 18.565 W 088° 59.752

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